The Dangling Pawn
by chainspell
Summary: How Hifumi Togo joined the Phantom Thieves. AU.
1. i

Hello! This is based on the information that Hifumi Togo was originally meant to be a member of Phantom Thieves. I've decided to write in how that might have played out in the story, along with putting together concepts of her Phantom Thief appearance and Persona. This will be a multi-part fic, I'm not quite sure how long, though I have most of it outlined at this point.

I haven't 'replaced' anyone in the party with this AU, but instead tried to submit Hifumi into the story as naturally as possible. Of course, with trying to confine myself in ways to realistically submit her, there might be parallels to other events or story elements in the game, but there are also quite a few differences. This is just a peek at what could of been.

* * *

Her hand hovered over the board, still and indecisive, as she considered her next move.

Hifumi's opponent was a fourth dan player. The match was supposed to be a challenge, with her narrowly defeating him in the end with some ingenuity and bold tactics. It was to make those that followed Shogi talk, to bring attention to who she was, so that it could lead to more interviews, to more photo shoots, to more chances to earn money to help with Father's treatment.

But her opponent was too good at giving her opportunities. His play acting was barely better than an amateur, an over dramatic novice commander on the battlefield that sent his men to die in a careless manner. Sacrifices to a greater cause. Hifumi could hear the murmurs of those that were observing the match, confusion as to why her opponent was playing so foolishly, and why she was hesitating with her next move.

What did she see that they didn't?

Hifumi saw at least a half of dozen ways she could proceed. Three of those options would lead to a checkmate in the next five turns. Her opponent's king remained unprotected, in the upper right hand corner of the board, easy to reach and take advantage of.

This wasn't a fair match in the slightest.

But, as she withdrew her hand from the board and observed the placement of its pieces, she reminded herself it was never meant to be a fair match. If it wasn't for the promise of half a million yen for the opponent, the cost to buy his pride, she would have surely conceded long ago. Everyone online would say of course Hifumi Togo lost, she would have no chance playing against a league player.

As she moved her hand back to the board and pushed her valiant knight forward, Hifumi bit her lip.

It was all too obvious. Someone was going to find out eventually. The matches before were easy to excuse, a lack of judgement and underestimation giving beautiful Hifumi Togo the chance she needed to succeed. Hifumi Togo, the Venus of Shogi, was becoming known for her ability to catch obscure openings and drive right through them. To come back when it seemed like she would lose for most of the match, right when her charm and beauty would mystify her opponent and secure the win.

Even when the wins were bought, no one respected her skill. It was still about how beautiful she was, how she was the ideal Japanese woman in appearance but only that.

This match was going to be different. Everyone would wonder about her opponent. Was something wrong with him today? Was he so easily charmed by the Venus of Shogi, a secret pervert charmed by the temptation of a high school girl?

Her eyes glanced up at her opponent. A man in his late thirties with some extra weight in his face, he was pondering the board. A professional like him knew how he could proceed, how he could crush her. But he was still pondering on how to give her more openings, to make it more obvious, because even he figured that Hifumi would need that extra helping hand to win. He didn't know that she had been playing since she could talk, that she would spend entire vacations with Father over the Shogi board, that there was three shelves in her room dedicated to Shogi books.

Shogi was one of the few things she still had.

"What is also interesting today is Togo-san's composure," her ears faintly picked up on the commentator behind her, that she had been able to successfully tune out up until this point. "Usually she treats her matches like a child's game, but she is finally giving the game the professionalism it deserves-"

They knew nothing.

Hifumi rose from her seat. Her opponent was preparing to move his king to even a more vulnerable position, a treat taunting her for the taking. The commentators stopped, and she could feel all the eyes in the room on her.

She was surprised to realize that her hands formed into fists on her sides. Taking a deep breath, she relaxed her hands and moved them forward, palms down against her skirt. Bowing her entire upper body took extreme effort, for she felt no respect towards her opponent, but even less towards herself. It boiled up in every inch of her being, waiting for its chance to explode and leak out the truth to anyone that would listen to her.

"I concede. Thank you for the match."

Whispers erupted around her, the murmurs of disbelief as the Venus of Shogi would dare concede when victory was so rightly assured. The opponent looked straight at her, his eyes shrouded with confusion and betrayal, his brow furrowed, his mouth turned into a disapproving frown. Hifumi reached down next to her chair and picked up her school bag, then turned around to make for the exit of the play hall.

As she went through the doors, Mother was waiting for her in the lobby. She was hovering nearby, one of her finely manicured hands clutching onto her phone, where she had been watching the match while it proceeded.

"Hifumi!" Mother whispered as Hifumi disregarded her, determined to make a graceful exit from the building. She could hear Mother's heels with each step she took, almost perfectly in time with Hifumi's own. "What were you thinking?"

The door to the play hall slid open on its own, out into the bright late afternoon sun of Tokyo. Hifumi shielded part of her face with her left hand to disregard the sunlight, and made her way down the sidewalk to the nearest train station. Mother's steps were still close behind her, still in time with each of Hifumi's strides, even when Hifumi broke out into a light jog towards the entrance of the station that led underground.

" Hifumi !" Mother hissed, her hand grabbing onto Hifumi's arm tightly and spinning her around. "You will answer me when I talk to you. What were you thinking ?"

Mother's eyes were dark green flames of rage and disappointment, but for the wrong reasons. Hifumi glared back at them, one of the few ways she could rebel before wrestling herself free from Mother's grasp. A few people that were walking close to them gave curious glances, but none of them really cared, as Mother waited for Hifumi to find the words to say and Hifumi waited for Mother to give up.

As she always did, however, Hifumi was the first to relent. "He was being too obvious."

"Too obvious?" Mother whispered in disbelief. "What about it was too obvious-"

She had never bothered to learn Shogi, even though Father dedicated his whole life to it, even though it was her daughter's dream to follow in his footsteps. It was just some silly child's game to her, with no real meaning, but a way to give the family what they needed.

"Are you listening to me?"

Hifumi learned how to drown out Mother's words with her thoughts long ago, just like she could tune out any commentator during a match. It was needed for her survival, for the long, meticulous match of living under her mother's thumb until there was a chance that she could break free. Only a year and a half remained, Hifumi kept telling herself, though she knew in reality that it would be longer and possibly never end.

"Of course," Hifumi lied, turning away. "He was too obvious. It was not well planned at all, but instead clearly a match of pity. I refuse to play against someone like that."

Mother's silence was a sign of what was to come a moment later. Hifumi stood there quietly, poised at attention, waiting for the rage that would come out of Mother's mouth. It would be about how pity didn't matter, about the waste of money, about how it would be more difficult to explain this away than an easy win. Hifumi knew that she wasted this opportunity, but she had realized staring at the Shogi board that she could only go along with it if the match was realistic right up until the end.

If Hifumi could still convince herself, even the tiniest part of herself that she was still the winning commander of the battlefield, then the opponent's generous openings could be forgiven. They could be tucked in the back of her brain to haunt her later during practice sessions with her club members or when she tried to sleep at night, as the moves replayed in her head over and over, enough times that she was sometimes subconsciously reenacting the scenarios on the Shogi board.

"That's...that's brilliant."

It wasn't the response she expected. Hifumi turned around in disbelief to see Mother standing there, an inhuman grin on her face. Mother reached out to gently grip onto Hifumi's arm this time, to now steer her down into the subway station. Her voice was louder now, at the tone of a normal conversation, but everyone around them was too absorbed in their own thoughts and concerns to even notice.

"We can say that it was sexism," Mother said to her, her eyes now alight with a warmer flame. One of pride. "That he was underestimating you and pitied you to give you the win. You were disgusted and had to forfeit the match because of that, right, Hifumi?"

Mother was still guiding her, now onto the train that would take them home. Hifumi wanted to scream, to point at Mother and tell anyone that would listen, and beg someone to take her away so she could just play Shogi. But her mind thought of Father in a hospital bed, staring out the window until he realized that Hifumi was there, and then a gentle smile-that Hifumi knew was painful-would pass his face.

"Hifumi, let's play a game."

She elected to tune out Mother's voice as they headed home, for Mother would chatter on incoherently about her plans. Future interviews, maybe a photoshoot or two, all to tarnish her opponent's name and to put Hifumi on a tainted pedestal. At the point when Mother finished chattering excitedly and pulled out her phone to check it, something clicked in Hifumi's mind that could make it all tumble down.

"Mother."

"Yes, Hifumi?"

"We can't say I withdrew because he was making it too easy for me," Hifumi said.

Mother looked up from her phone suspiciously. "Of course we can. The public will eat it up, why shouldn't we?"

Hifumi lowered her voice. "Because he could counter that we paid for him to lose."

A laugh escaped Mother's lips, the high pitched, throaty kind that she sometimes put on because she thought it was more attractive than her natural one. Hifumi winced. "No one will believe him. You against him? You're so beautiful and innocent, Hifumi. No one will believe him for even a second."

Hifumi stared at her mother in horror as she returned to her phone, quickly tapping away at the screen. None of this made her innocent and beautiful. It made her a villain, the opponent on a battlefield of a world that was rightly against her.

It had to stop.

Keeping an eye on Mother, Hifumi slowly pulled out her phone from her school bag and turned on the screen. She was praying for some sort of distraction. There were several notifications from her chat group with the Shogi Club, which she rarely interacted with but only observed. Even with her love of Shogi, she found it difficult to relate to them, and constantly felt like an outsider.

Here's the link I was telling you about, Konomi~

Ok thanks! Gonna totally suggest they steal Takeuchi-Sensei's heart, maybe it'll make him give us less homework during the break, lol

Aaaaa good idea, I'll post his name too!

It was a link to something called a Phan-Site. Perplexed, Hifumi clicked the link, and a harsh red and black webpage met her eyes. It appeared to be some sort of fansite for the Phantom Thieves, with a poll and a long post about their recent exploits at the top. Scrolling down further, there was a message board where people posted anonymously, some of them with people's names attached.

She had heard of the Phantom Thieves, of course. Everyone at school spoke of them in excited tones, wondering who their next target would be after their recent theft of a mafia boss' heart. Before that, it was a famous artist. Hifumi only knew that because one of the artist's students went to her school...

Please steal their heart, Phantom Thieves!

They're a rotten person!

Hifumi's finger hovered over the field where she could submit a request. Mother was still absorbed in her phone, rapidly responding to some sort of work email from what Hifumi tell by the rate of her presses. She tapped the field and slowly began to type.

Mitsuyo Togo.

No, that wasn't right. It was Hifumi's fault that it got this far, not her mother's. She cleared out the field and rapidly typed in a different name instead.

Hifumi Togo.

Her finger hovered over the submit button. It would be awkward to put her name out there with no explanation, but she felt an encroaching shame surrounding her. How could Hifumi begin to admit it, even anonymously? It felt like she was too far gone at this point, but if she was too far gone, then the only real solution was this.

She took a deep breath and typed more.

She bribes others with money to lose matches so she can advance her Shogi career. She is a selfish person who needs to stop and won't admit to her ways without stealing her heart. Please help

No, that would be too obvious. Hifumi erased help and continued.

Please steal their heart.

Submit.

"Hifumi?"

She jumped. Mother was looking at her, but there wasn't a hint of suspicion on her face, only curiosity.

"This is our stop," Mother told her. She grabbed onto Hifumi's arm again, a bit too tightly, to lead her off the train.

"Sorry, I was reading something from Shogi Club," Hifumi said, sliding her phone back into her school bag. Her heart was beating rapidly, and she wondered if Mother could notice from her grip onto her arm.

"Anything interesting?" Mother asked, feigning interest as she continued to guide Hifumi. It seemed like she didn't.

"No, not really."


	2. ii

Thanks for all the feedback I've gotten so far! I have a request if you have the time when you review. I'm still trying to find my voice for most of the cast, so if you feel like a certain character is weak or not portrayed quite correctly, I'd love to hear any suggestions if you have them. If you don't, or don't want to review, that's okay too! Thank you.

* * *

The back of Akira's collar stuck to his neck due to sweat, only minorly comforted by the warm breeze wafting through the window. He spun his phone in his hand slowly, lost in thought over the upcoming summer vacation and Futaba Sakura.

Makoto sat nearby, going over calculus equations that were likely to be on college entrance exams, occasionally glancing over to her phone that she set on the table. Ann was fingering through a fashion magazine with one hand, her other twirling the end of one of her pigtails absentmindedly. Yusuke ate each of his Calbee shrimp snacks in the exact same way, with precise bites down its length, like Akira saw chipmunks eating on web videos.

Ryuji leaned dangerously back in his chair, one of his feet against the table Akira set up when his friends came over. He was reading on his phone, scrolling with his thumb rapidly, seemingly disinterested in whatever he was reading.

Morgana left them several minutes earlier to attempt to sneak into Sojiro's house. Every attempt to talk to to Futaba, whether it be by talking at her through her door or slipping pieces of paper under the crack in the bottom, had been unsuccessful. After attempting to sneak in with sushi for Sojiro as a front and Sojiro's later explanation of Futaba's past, she had shut them out completely. It seemed that she no longer desired to have her heart stolen, and hours spent over the MetaNav with the looming threat of Medjed in everyone's minds had left them at an impasse.

They had a name. They had a location. They just didn't have the right keyword.

It was Morgana's suggestion they look for another target in the meantime, someone so big that it'd maybe scare Medjed and cause them to back off. There was also the option of finding someone that actually belonged to Medjed and stealing their heart, but that was even more unlikely, especially without Futaba's help.

"What about this one..." Ryuji said slowly, but then sighed. "Nevermind. There's no name."

Makoto placed her pen down on top of the workbook, leaning back on the couch and closing her eyes with a groan. "Even if someone has a name there, Ryuji, I doubt they're going to have a heart distorted enough to have their own palace."

"Just tryin' to find ideas," Ryuji muttered.

Akira didn't blame him. They hadn't checked the Phan-Site in a couple of weeks, too occupied with exams, Medjed and Futaba. He would have checked it himself, too, but Akira was having trouble finding motivation to do anything during the heat wave. With a yawn, he set his phone down on the table and then rested his head against the cool plastic.

"This one's got a name!" It was only a second of relief before Ryuji spoke again. "And it's got a lot of comments, too...sheesh. She's not very popular."

As Akira lifted his head from the table, Ryuji had his phone closer to his face, eyes squinted, as if he was trying to make out some of the characters. "I can't read her last name completely though. To-something...hey, Makoto-"

"Let me see," Ann said in annoyance, reaching over to snatch the phone out of Ryuji's hands. She paused as she read the screen of his phone, and Makoto curiously leaned over to look at it as well. Yusuke turned around in his seat to now face the table, bringing out his own phone.

"You couldn't read that?" Makoto asked suspiciously. "It's Togo."

"I forgot the second character!" Ryuji exclaimed defensively. "Read the comments, though."

"I'm sick of her smug face at school," Ann read out loud. Makoto seemed concerned, continuing to read silently off Ryuji's phone. "She's not as good as she thinks she is...She only wants to become famous and is using Shogi as an excuse...I can't believe she is riding off her Father's-"

"This girl goes to my school," Yusuke interrupted, now staring at his phone, delicately scrolling with his pointer finger. Ryuji grabbed his phone back from Ann, hissing for Ann to use her own phone instead of using his. "Hifumi Togo...she caused quite the uproar recently."

Makoto nodded, picking her phone up off the table. "I could tell based on the comments. It's true that she was bribing others in order to win Shogi matches, then?"

Yusuke was quiet for several seconds, continuing to read through the comments before responding. "That seems to be the case. She agreed to be banned from Shogi tournaments for the rest of the year as punishment, but I believe most felt that the punishment wasn't enough."

Makoto was reading something on her phone now, but when Akira leaned over to take a look, he could tell that it wasn't the Phan-Site, but instead a news article.

"Hifumi Togo, a second year at Kosei High School and an upcoming competitive Shogi player, has been banned from all upcoming tournaments for the remainder of the year due to bribery and cheating," Makoto read from the article aloud, and everyone looked up from their phones to listen to her. "A meeting with the Japan Shogi Association will take place early next month to discuss additional punishments and a possible lifetime ban for Miss Togo. Nicknamed the Venus of Shogi among fans, she has also recently gained popularity due to photo shoots and interviews in various magazine publications."

"Ohhhh," Ann said, her eyes widening in realization. "I thought the name Hifumi seemed familiar...there must have been an interview with her in one of the magazines I keep up with, or something. I think it described her as 'the ideal Japanese beauty'..." She then rolled her eyes, slumping against the couch.

"Sounds like it's going to sort itself out, then," Ryuji said, in slight disappointment. "If she's going to get a lifetime ban, what good would stealing her heart do?"

"She could move on," Akira spoke up. "To something else."

"To what, though?" Ann asked. "Sure, if she's wanting to become a model or something, bribery could continue there, but that's kind of natural in the modelling world...no one would blink an eye."

"It would still be dishonest," Yusuke said, placing his phone in his lap and returning to the snacks. "And I don't believe she has shown any remorse to this situation."

Makoto was still reading the article. Akira picked up his phone off the table and opened up the Phan-Site, to find the original request post himself and comments. As he scrolled down to try and locate it, Makoto began to read from the article again.

"Miss Togo is the daughter of famous rank nine Shogi player Junichi Togo, who unexpectedly retired two years ago due to ill health," Makoto read aloud to the group. "In recent interviews she stated her desire to push for and eventually gain qualification for the usually male exclusive fourth dan ranking. This sparked some controversy over the division of male and female professionals in Shogi, and discussions over whether the separate leagues should be combined. However, due to the recent anonymous tip regarding Miss Togo's bribery and cheating, most Shogi commentators agree that any future career in the sport seems unlikely."

Everyone was silent as Makoto finished reading the article, seeming to consider its words at the end. Akira was nearing the end of the Phan-Site's page when he was able to find the request to steal Hifumi's heart.

Hifumi Togo. She bribes others with money to lose matches so she can advance her Shogi career. She is a selfish person who needs to stop and won't admit to her ways without stealing her heart. Please steal their heart.

Akira frowned, and he read the request again. Something felt off about it, but he couldn't pinpoint exactly what. He heard another sigh from Makoto, a groan from Ryuji, and the shuffling of chairs.

"Well, I'm goin' to go-"

"Already, Ryuji?"

Morgana finally had returned, jumping onto the middle of the table and looking around at the group. Ryuji stopped mid-motion, as he was stretching his arms above his head, and with an exaggerated breath plopped down back into his set. "Like you found anythin' out about Futaba, Morgana."

"Not at all, but that doesn't mean we should be complacent!" Morgana scolded, turning his head to look at everyone, who appeared defeated. "We should look for our next target, to scare Medjed!"

"We know, Morgana," Ann said. "We were discussing someone just now."

"Who?" Morgana asked curiously, perking up at this information.

"She's a student at my school," Yusuke told Morgana. "She's been caught cheating in professional Shogi, and someone requested for her heart to be stolen on the Phan-Site."

Morgana deflated at this. "That's it? Someone cheating at Shogi?"

"There's a lot of comments on it!" Ryuji yelled. "People on the Phan-Site want us to steal her heart!"

"We shouldn't be wasting our time on someone in Mementos at the moment!" Morgana argued, now standing on all fours.

"To be fair," Makoto spoke up, cupping her chin in her hand with a thoughtful expression. "We haven't even checked her name in the MetaNav yet. She could be in Mementos, but she could also have a Palace."

"Why don't we check then?" Ann suggested, now sitting up straight. "If she doesn't have a Palace, but is in Mementos, we can just add it to the targets list. If she isn't a hit at all, we're arguing over nothing."

Morgana perked up at this. "An excellent suggestion, Lady Ann!"

Makoto returned to her phone and brought up the MetaNav. She looked over at Akira while it loaded, who was still staring at the request on the Phan-Site. His head tilted slightly, and the frown on his face was rather pronounced.

"Something bothering you?" Makoto asked.

"You are being quieter than usual," Yusuke said as an observation.

"It's the request," Akira said. He looked up from his phone and around the room. "It seems off, but I can't tell why."

"I'll take a look in the moment," Makoto offered, as Ann and Ryuji both straightened up in their chairs in interest. "Let me see here...Hifumi Togo..." She typed into the phone rapidly with two fingers, then hit enter.

The MetaNav's voice was loud and clear in Akira's room. "No match found."

Ryuji deflated in his seat, while Yusuke raised an eyebrow. Ann crossed her legs and began to mess with one of her pigtails, and Morgana chuckled in satisfaction and sat himself down again in the middle of his table. Makoto and Akira's were the only expressions that remained the same, as Makoto gazed at the MetaNav thoughtfully and Akira reached up with his free hand to flatten some of his hair.

"What was wrong with the request, Akira?"

"Let me read it," Akira said, straightening up in his seat. "Hifumi Togo...she bribes others with money to lose matches so she can advance her Shogi career...she is a selfish person who needs to stop and won't admit to her ways without stealing her heart...Please steal their heart."

"What seems wrong with it?" Ryuji yawned. "Seems pretty standard to me."

"No," Makoto said, shaking her head. "Akira's right. There's something off about it...let me look at it."

She closed down the MetaNav on her phone and brought up the Phan-Site, scrolling rapidly until she reached the request. In the meantime, Ann and Yusuke seemed to be bringing up the request on their phones as well. Ryuji sighed and got up from his chair, now beginning to pace the room.

After close to a minute, Makoto spoke. "I know why it was bothering you...she bribes...she can...her Shogi career...she is...her ways...her heart... please steal their heart."

"What about it?" Ann asked. "I have to agree with Ryuji, it doesn't really seem strange to me."

"The entire request refers to Hifumi with either she or her," Makoto explained. "Right up until the end. Whoever wrote this switched to their when referring to her heart being stolen, it's more vague."

Yusuke looked up from his phone, his eyes widening. "Are you suggesting...?"

"It refers to two different people," Akira said. He turned off the screen on his phone, and set it back on the table. "She might not be the real target."

Ryuji stopped walking around the room, now seemingly interested in the conversation at hand. He wandered back over to his seat and sat himself down. Morgana seemed flabbergasted at this, his mouth hanging open, but the shine in his eyes told Akira that he was also intrigued.

"Who could it be, then...?" Ann pondered, still reading the request on her phone.

Makoto closed down the Phan-Site and brought up the article she read aloud earlier. She scrolled through it quickly, before coming to a stop on a paragraph towards the bottom. "Akira, try this name. Junichi Togo."

"Her father?" Yusuke questioned.

"It would make sense," Morgana said, seeming convinced. Akira picked his phone back up and turned on the MetaNav to type it in. "If she isn't the one responsible for setting up the cheating, we should start with those that are closest to her."

"How do you write it?" Akira asked, and he typed it in just the way Makoto told him.

The result was disappointing.

"No match found."

"Augh, this is too difficult," Ryuji complained, throwing his head back to stare at the ceiling. Ann rested her head against the table with a sigh. "Why give the wrong name for a request when she isn't who we're even supposed to be going after?"

Makoto's eyes appeared clouded, her brows drawn together. She put her hand to her chin with her free hand, while appearing to bring up a new web page from her phone with the other. Morgana had taken Ryuji's place in walking around the room, his head turned downward, staring at the floor. Akira watched as Makoto moved her chin to her pen and wrote something down in the margins, out of the way of her equations.

"Looks like you found something," Akira said.

"It's worth a shot," Makoto sighed. "But, I'm not hopeful...it's her mother's name."

"I sense this is going to be a dead end, no matter how hard we try," Yusuke said, leaning forward, causing some of his hair to fall in front of his face. "I could reach out to others that are at the dorms to see if I can find anything out."

No one responded. Makoto opened up the MetaNav app on her phone, and Akira kept an eye on her actions as she typed a name into the search field and hit enter.

The room around them changed, flashing a murky purple for a moment and then returning to normal. Makoto dropped her phone onto the table with a thud, and gazed at each face around her that stared at her in shock. Ann lifted her head from the table and shook her head in surprise, blinking rapidly.

"Candidate found."


End file.
